Erick Burgess's Blog, page 5

What Professional Wrestling Can Teach Us About Writing Thrillers

Long before I became a writer, I was a fan of professional wrestling. These were the early days before the WWE did away with all of the competition. In the early 80s the country was divided into territories. In Louisiana, our territory was Mid-South Wrestling. Some of the best times in my life were spent in the Baton Rouge Centroplex with my grandfather, rooting against Jim Cornette and the Midnight Express. I loved their rivals, the Rock & Roll Express.

Fast forward thirty years. My son is now a wrestling fan. While it’s not really the same “family friendly” product I enjoyed as a boy, and they freely admit that it is “sports entertainment” it’s still fun. His favorite wrestler is John Cena. He loves John Cena. For my son’s birthday, I ordered Wrestlemania XXVIII. The main event was The Rock vs. John Cena. We had a great time . . . until John Cena lost. My son was practically inconsolable. It reminded me the days when my biggest concern was whether or not the Junkyard Dog would beat Butch Reed or if the Midnight Express would cheat AGAIN to beat the Rock & Roll Express. I smiled and dismissed the thought as I wiped my son’s tears and tucked him into bed.

A few weeks later, I was talking to my fiancée about the antagonist in her short story, and that was when it hit me…

In a drama, whether it’s pro wrestling, novels or television, you can’t have a great hero without a great villain. As much as I loved the Rock & Roll Express, I HATED Jim Cornette and the Midnight Express. As much as my son loves John Cena, now he HATES The Rock. He won’t even watch The Rock’s movies anymore. If he does watch one, all he wants is for The Rock to die a slow painful death.

That is the type of hate that I want for my antagonists. With as much time as we spend on our heroes, it really doesn’t matter unless they are facing insurmountable odds or a villain that has them completely out matched.

Look at the most popular wrestler of all time, Hulk Hogan. Most of his early success centered around one of his first feuds after winning the championship.

Rowdy Roddy Piper.

Who was Roddy Piper? Everything Hogan wasn’t. He was evil from the top of his head down past his kilt and into the soles of his wrestling boots. He was totally self-centered and had no regard for the welfare of others. He was a user, a liar, a cheater and someone you had to hate.

With all he accomplished in wrestling, Hulk Hogan was not a great ring technician. He had the look and he had the personality, but without Piper, who was a great wrestler, he could never have achieved the level of success he did in the eighties.

Recently, I took my son to a live wrestling show in the same arena that my grandfather took me thirty years before. One of the wrestlers, a third generation star named Ted Dibiase, told the crowd that he was born in Baton Rouge. The crowd cheered. Then he said the best thing his father did was move him away from that God-forsaken place the next day. I have never heard someone booed that much in my life. With that insult, he was forever cemented as a villain by anyone who was in the arena that night. Ultimately, people love to hate more than they love to love.

Whenever you come up blank when working on your protagonist, flip the script and spend some time developing your antagonist. If you need inspiration, watch some pro wrestling. I promise that you will get plenty of ideas.

A message from Adventure Team Director, Jack Slade

Live from the Adventure Team Headquarters: Location – Unknown. A message from AT Director, Jack Slade.

 

“First of all, my name is Jack Slade and I want to address the recent requests of my team. We are a fighting organization with highly skilled operatives who do not have time to fraternize with Barbie or any of her friends. As far as the GI JOE gobblity goop, the next time I hear that particular phrase, the user will find himself in a cold dark cell at Gitmo! With that out of the way, here are a few words from my second in command, David Marshall.”

“As of now, the organization formerly know as the Adventure Team, will now be know as the Action Adventure Team or AAT. The AAT is an elite branch of the Department of Defense, similar to the FBI/NYPD Joint Terrorism Task Force and the CIA Counter terrorist Center’s Special Activities Division. Our headquarters are in Washington, D.C. with satellite operations in major cities where threats are likely. The AAT’s primary mission is to disrupt and destroy foreign and domestic terror cells hostile to the United States, as well as protect it from terrorist attacks. With an office in nearly every major city, the AAT also has a role in creating security policy and fighting groups of organized crime that fund terrorism. Now, back to director Slade.”

“We’re a generation of men raised by women. I’m wondering if another woman is really the answer we need. I know that this a quote from the movie, Fight Club, but it applies now more than ever. This country has become soft and the AAT is here to whip it back into shape.”

Fifty Shades of Red: My view of the newest publishing phenomonon.

The Fifty Shades of Grey Trilogy, by British author E.L. James, Fifty Shades Darker and Fifty Shades Freed took the top three spots on USA TODAY’s Best-Selling Books list with the first book being in the No. 1 spot for three weeks. Even with this amazing success, James does have her fair share of critics.

While I really don’t consider myself a prude, this book is pretty much straight porn. In saying that, if porn is what you are looking for, then it’s a great read. As an author, I tend to be more critical than I should, so I tried reading this book with an open mind. I was warned the book started slow. It did. The main character, Anastasia Steele, was fairly interesting, but thoroughly unbelievable the farther I read. She is about to graduate from college and she is a virgin. Ok, before I start receiving hate mail, let me just say it is not unbelievable that she is a virgin. It’s unbelievable that this chaste state is not because of some moral or religious conviction. Furthermore, she appears to be attractive, intelligent and have a great personality. Her reason for remaining abstinent was that she never met anyone she liked in that way.

Really?

No one tickled her fancy enough for her to be interested at all? If that was the case, I would think she would be more interested in having a relationship with her longtime female roommate. It’s because of the roommate’s illness, that Ana meets and instantly falls for the enigmatic, handsome, young billionaire entrepreneur, Christian Grey. From the first time the character is introduced, you know something is not quite right about him. Thank God he wasn’t a vampire, but at least that would explain the instant and overwhelming attraction. Granted, it’s easy to be attracted to a good looking man with money, but that is not what she sees in him. For whatever reason, he is also instantly attracted to her. Though he states it’s due to her innocence and naivety, he is shocked when he discovers she is a virgin. Before he can introduce her to his particular predilection of bondage, discipline, sadism and masochism, he has to “deflower” her with regular “vanilla” sex. During their first encounter, she admits to never having had an orgasm or ever masturbating.

Really? I mean, come on. How did she make it through four years of college without being at least a little curious about SOMETHING sexual?

Fine. Even if I were to go along with that part of the story, when they do actually have sex it was a magical carpet ride into sexual pleasure. I know this is fiction, but I don’t know anyone whose first sexual experience was anything but a virtual disaster. It’s a wonder we ever actually try it a second time.

Now after she is “broken in” he reveals that he only wants a slave/master relationship with her, and she has to agree to his terms by signing a contract. So I’m supposed to believe she goes from 0 to 100 on her sexual pedometer in a matter of days? The most troubling part of the book was the story surrounding why Christian had his particular fetish.

Though handsome and unbelievably rich, Christian is spoiled, rude, bossy, arrogant and smarmy.

Even then, I was still trying to hang on. But there was one thing that lost me – the story.

Fifty Shade of Grey wasn’t something that I would have normally have picked out to read, but I picked it up on the recommendation of a friend. Typically, I enjoy mysteries and thrillers and though I’ve heard there is a bit more intrigue in the next two books in the series, the lack of any real story in the first book, left me a bit on the empty side. I applaud James for touching the souls and nether regions of today’s women, but with the exception of being written from the female perspective, the plot is not much different from the porno movies teenagers sneak out of their dad’s bedroom.

Dance like no one is watching . . . and fall flat on your face.

Have you ever have one of those days when you felt like if you wrote down your name, someone would be standing over your shoulder to critique it?  I’m not sure who to attribute the quote about dancing to, but whoever it was, probably wasn’t a writer. Well, neither am I if you believe the reviews for my first book.

Today is one of those days when I feel like my mom is monitoring barnesandnoble.com and whenever someone writes a bad review, she tries to counter it with a good one. (Thanks mom). Under Abnormal Conditions is my first book and it was originally published in 2003.  I know that it was not my best work and I should have been more patient in seeking a publisher.  It was raw and unpolished, but it was me opening a vein on paper.

So do the bad reviews hurt? Of course they do! The thing about it is that I’ve grown so much as a writer since then that I’m not the same person I was in 2003.  Since then I’ve dealt with four significant deaths in my family, single fatherhood, career change and a diagnoses of multiple sclerosis.  In reality, I needed this book to be a relative failure to keep myself on the right path.

In 2012, I will publish at least four books, each better than the last. So does success necessarily translate into book sales? No, but I still feel successful. My goal since high school was to become a writer. I’ve achieved that. I am a better writer now than I was, and isn’t that all that counts? Sure, I want to sell a billion books, but will that make me a better father, husband or son? No it won’t. The failure of my first book will forever keep me hungry as well as grounded.

I know from experience that anything worth having is worth working for. That doesn’t begrudge writers like Amanda Hocking or E.L. James who have found tremendous success in a relatively short amount of time. Their success keeps me hopeful that I will find my audience and the accolades that come with it.  That just wasn’t my path.  This is a journey that was tailor made for me and I thank God for it.  I mean, I may end up a barista at Starbucks, but I’ll be the happiest, book writing, coffee drinking barista in the world!

That’s some pretty bad stuff, but at least they took the time to read the book and submit the review. The only thing for me to do now is write for those who do enjoy my work (thanks mom). So from now on, my attitude is:

“Dance like nobody’s watching. Love like you’ve never been hurt. Sing like nobody’s listening, and write like my mom’s my only reader!”

Even if I fail at that, she still loves me (and she has cookies.)

Darker Than Night

RELEASING IN 2012

Darker Than Night

A Novel by Erick D. Burgess

Genre: Thriller

Release: July 2012

Editor: Christine I. Speakman

Back Cover:

In Darker Than Night, secrets and scandals are served up daily in a world where no one is safe, neither sinner nor saint. The brutal predator whispers his signature, chilling line to each victim before he strikes: “I come from a place darker than night.”

Reluctantly reinstated to the force, seasoned yet troubled homicide detective Carter Williams is assigned to investigate the death of a reputed child molester and murderer. The gruesome murder upsets no one, but as the killer goes on to torture and slay numerous victims, he surprisingly wins favor with the public. As the case becomes more and more personal, Williams’ own reputation is threatened as he deals with department politics, a young partner, and a fragile home life. Williams struggles to unravel the gruesome mystery while trying to hold onto everything he has so carefully strived to protect.

Click the link below to reserve your copy!

http://museituppublishing.com/bookstore2/index.php?page=shop.waiting_list&product_id=423&option=com_virtuemart&Itemid=1

About the Author:

Erick D. Burgess has been writing mysteries for the past fifteen years. Born and raised in the small town of Denham Springs, Louisiana, he earned a football scholarship to Northwestern State University where he blew out his knee after his first practice and effectively ended his football career. He then transferred to Southeastern Louisiana University to complete his degree in psychology. He continues to live in Denham Springs with his two kids and their two dogs, Bandit and Mystery.

What if BATMAN wrote book reviews?

The thing that first attracted me to this book was the title, Mask of Shadows. For some reason, that really appealed to me. The hero of the book is Michael Drake. I’m not sure why he’s classified as a hero as he has no actual super powers . . . but I digress. Drake is a part-time private investigator and part-time jazz club owner. Though the concept is not as interesting as being a part-time crime fighter and part-time billionaire playboy, I found the premise intriguing.

The young detective starts the day as he has many others, doing a favor for a friend all the while dealing with a precocious sidekick ­his young nephew. Through no fault of his own, Drake falls right into the middle of a murder plot that reaches back to his days in college. The author, Erick Burgess, is a natural storyteller and keeps the reader engaged. The problem with this novel lies in the fact that the protagonist doesn’t have a fancy car or other sophisticated crime solving gadgets. For me to believe that an “average Joe” would throw himself in these dangerous situations to simply help a friend without any real protection is a bit of a stretch. Although Drake does carry a weapon from time to time, he doesn’t have any martial arts training or advanced weapons skills. I did find myself identifying with Drake’s need to solve the disappearance of his fiancée, setup in the author’s previous book, Under Abnormal Conditions. In attempting to solve the murder in Mask of Shadows, Drake becomes entangled in the crime itself, and is hunted by overzealous police officers.

The more I think about it, the more I like this author’s work. The lead character is flawed and must overcome his personal demons to become a hero. He works in a corrupt city with a flawed criminal justice system. He has an annoying young ward that helps him keep his humanity. He is fighting betrayal, as well as a killer who seems to remain one step ahead of him. Most importantly, Drake is driven by an incorruptible sense of right and wrong. That is only the beginning when murder and passion collide in Gotham City­ a small south Louisiana town. When the true killer is revealed, Drake must deal with the consequences and the lives he helped destroy.

Not that I have much leisure time, but I would definitely read more books by this author in the future. I give him 3 ½ batarangs out of 5.

Book Launch Contest

Take a photo of yourself promoting my latest novel, Mask of Shadows, for a chance to win a Kindle. The second place winner will be a featured character in the next Michael Drake mystery. The third place winner will receive PDF's of Under Abnormal Conditions, Paved With Good Intentions and Mask of Shadows.

Enter to Win April 1-15, 2012





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To participate, entrants may upload as many pictures of themselves creatively promoting Mask of Shadows on Facebook, Twitter, Blogs, etc. On April 9, and independent panel will chose five finalists and the pictures will be posted on www.facebook.com/cluewriterauthor and the fans will cast their votes for the winner. The winner will be announced on April 16, 2012.

On Facebook, be sure to tag Fans of Erick Burgess in the photos, on Twitter include #cluewritercontest or email your blog post to cluewriter.author@gmail.com

Thank you and good luck!

Do you like haunted houses?

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The Lalaurie Mansion

Whether it's due to a sky high violent crime rate, crooked cops, or corrupt politicians, there has always been a cloud of darkness over the city. The stain is so deep it couldn't even be washed away by Hurricane Katrina or a Super Bowl victory. The entire city exists enduringly as a living, breathing entity that represents all the good and bad in the world. Museums, parks, shopping and street performers offer an exciting backdrop of family entertainment. After the kids are in bed, adults indulge in their various vices on Bourbon Street. The alcohol flows like water and the glow of electric sex dances in the windows. That is what they want you to see. But what happens after the hurricanes have stopped being served at Pat O'Brien's and the taps are closed at Finnegan's?

There is a house that remains shrouded in mystery. 1140 Royal Street, New Orleans, Louisiana – The Lalaurie Mansion. This house is the setting my first paranormal romance, which is coming soon.

In the meantime, check out my new collection of short stories, Paved with Good Intentions: www.smashwords.com/books/view/143683

As a way of thanking my loyal readers, I would like to offer you a free download of these stories. All I ask in return is for you to submit an honest review and rating on the Smashwords website. If you are interested, send an email to cluewriter.author@gmail.com with the words "Free Book" in the subject field, and I will send you the coupon code for a free download. Thank you again for your support.

Paved With Good Intentions

Paved With Good Intentions, a collection of mystery short stories is available on Smashwords for $.99.

What is it like to plan the perfect crime? What is it like to be on the trail of a vicious killer? Have you ever asked yourself either of these questions? If so, then why do you love crime fiction? It's because there has always been something sexy about a dark mysterious stranger appearing from the shadows. There is the satisfaction of figuring out the crime before your hero does. It's the safety in knowing the crimes stop as soon as you close the book and go to sleep. Join me with these seven stories that just may keep you up all night. Being in the wrong place at the wrong time is bad for relationships, but it makes for excellent crime fiction. In Paved with Good Intentions, follow ordinary people who stumble into extraordinary situations.

If you read my books, please let me know what you thought.

Filed under: Writing

Paved With Good Intentions

[image error]Paved With Good Intentions, a collection of mystery short stories is available on Smashwords for $.99.

What is it like to plan the perfect crime? What is it like to be on the trail of a vicious killer? Have you ever asked yourself either of these questions? If so, then why do you love crime fiction? It's because there has always been something sexy about a dark mysterious stranger appearing from the shadows. There is the satisfaction of figuring out the crime before your hero does. It's the safety in knowing the crimes stop as soon as you close the book and go to sleep. Join me with these seven stories that just may keep you up all night. Being in the wrong place at the wrong time is bad for relationships, but it makes for excellent crime fiction. In Paved with Good Intentions, follow ordinary people who stumble into extraordinary situations.

If you read my books, please let me know what you thought.